Off To See The Wild West Show Part 1, Chapter 2 (3/4) By Frank Beill 1886: Hull, Yorkshire

(1/4), (2/4), (3/4), (4/4). Part 1 Chapter 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20. Part 2 Prologue, Chapter 1, 2, 3.

At the far end was a man who I took to be no taller than myself. On a closer look I saw my mistake. He was almost bent double. Most of his face was hidden behind a mass of crinkly grey beard and long grey ringlets hanging down from inside a black satin skullcap. All I could see of his face was a large hooked nose and dark eyes, which I could feel reaching into my soul. He was old; I swear I had never seen anyone as old as he before. 'This is Master Samuel Smyle, Mr Silver.' My guardian let go of my hand. I was overcome by fear of this strange creature. Was he a dormitory?

'Samuel. That is a good name! A very good name.' The voice was deep and guttural with a thick accent. He shuffled awkwardly towards me with one hand held behind him on his hip. 'Ve vill need to make a special suit for this Samuel. Are you a prince from the Indies?' I took half a pace back in fear of this hobgoblin but when he said 'prince' he made me think of Mam. She called me 'her prince' when she rocked me gently off to sleep in her arms. 'But such blue eyes. Never have I seen such blue eyes in so dark a face.' The old man nodded with his whole body when he spoke. He pulled a tape measure from its hiding place around his neck. 'I vill make you a suit fit for a prince. No fit for a king!' He gave a chesty laugh and inched closer to me. 'Do not be afraid of old Moshe,' he half whispered. He struggled to take the tape in both hands and measure me from my shoulder to wrist. 'I too am a stranger in this land although I have been here for a hundred years!' He laughed chestily again. 'You've been here as long as I can remember!' Mrs G laughed too.

'I have made suits for generations of gentlemen in Hull and now I make one for a prince!' His arms went around my chest to lasso me with the tape. The skullcap burrowed into my stomach and he took the measure of my thin waist. There was a strong smell of tobacco in his hair. It was unlike the friendly aroma of father's clay pipe; more a pungent, old man smell. He mumbled the measurements to himself in a strange language.

'Stand on a stool. Let me measure your legs. I cannot be reaching down there at my age.' He chuckled to himself. I climbed onto the nearest stool but it proved to have legs of uneven length which made it rock uncertainly. I perched myself on it and waited for the tailor to take more measurements. 'That is it! His suit vill be ready in three days.' He nodded in agreement with himself and ambled towards the door. 'Good day, Mrs Grainger. Good day, your highness.' While one hand continued to grip his hip, the free one rose in a rotating backhanded wave and he disappeared through the door. 'Now young man, we'd better be finding you some clothes to be goin' on with while Mr Silver is makin' your suit.' Mrs G eyed me up and down and I continued to wobble on the stool. 'Let's see what we've got for you. We've not had many your size though.' She pondered a moment. 'Get yourself down and take those old things off, you're makin' the place look untidy.'

Continued Next Page

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